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Friday, July 17, 2009

Slacken in Central Florida

Sorry folks I have taken so long to update said blog. I departed Grenada aboard an American Airlines plane on July 6th and safely made it to Tampa, where Dad picked me up for further transport to Summerfield. It truly is wonderful to be back in the United States, home of the brave. I have lots of irons in the fire, as the saying goes. I've been pretty busy visiting my parents and 86 year old grandfather who has been pretty ill in Vero Beach.

Culture shock is real. I've missed the ease of gathering supplies and taking care of the daily choirs. St Maartin was the last place I'd been that really had any kind of westernized grocery stores. Even then they were small, expensive and limited. Then the other day I entered a Publix and was bewildered at its scope. I would have not done well on the Prices Right as I totally had lost contact with what was a reasonable price. For example, I am a coffee snob and want good coffee. The best coffee I could find in Grenada was Dunkin Donuts original blend, 12 OZ. Price? $26.95 USD. I was lockin up. I did have a clue that $26.95 was a bit pricey, but didn't know I could get the same coffee and size for about $5.00. On the flip side of that coin, I dined on some beautiful red American "organic" tomatoes that were ok, but compared to tomatoes in the island tasted poorly. Fruits and vegies in the islands look mangled, likely are filled with seeds and stalks, but the taste is rich and full of flavor. This tells me that food in the US is being engineered in some fashion to look good at the expense of taste. I always side with function over fashion; then again I am a male.

Another bummer is all the traffic signs and stop lights. In the bannana republics, to the in experienced eye, things looks quite chaotic, with all the horns and cars stopping where they like. But really an organized ebb and flow is occruing. Personal responsibility dictating society? How shocking. American driving is regulated in every aspect.